Sheldon Head Start working to remedy noncompliance issues

One area corrected; two more need attention

Erica Royer, a paraprofessional at Sheldon Child Development Center Head Start Program, plays "monkey in the middle" with some of the students. A 2012 inspection by the Administration for Children and Families found that some of the center's playground equipment hadn't been maintained properly. That noncompliance has been corrected.

The administration of the Sheldon Child Development Center and staff members are working diligently to correct problems identified in federal reviews, Scott Henson, the center’s director, said Thursday.

Although a problem with playground equipment has been fixed, a follow-up review shows the Head Start center, 1155 S.W. Seabrook Ave., still isn’t in compliance with making sure dental and physical screenings are on file within 90 calendar days of a child’s entry into the program.

“If we determine your agency has failed to correct this deficiency within the specified time frame, we will issue a letter stating our intent to terminate the Head Start designation of your agency,” a document dated March 10 states.

That could lead to a loss of federal support.

The center, which serves 3- and 4-year-olds from low-income families, currently receives more than $2.1 million in federal funds, Henson said.

During a December 2012 on-site review of the Topeka Unified School District 501 Head Start center, Administration for Children and Families officials spent five days speaking with parents, teachers and administrators about the program.

The first findings, dated Jan. 28, 2013, stated the strengths of the program, along with noncompliant areas.

The collaborative relationship between the early-childhood special education team, USD 501 and Sheldon’s disabilities coordinator is “a strength of the program,” the report states.

“The partnership enabled team members to maintain regular contact and frequent communication, work to maintain a child-centered focus, and increase involvement in the identification, enrollment, evaluation and determination to process for children with special needs,” the report states.

It also states the board of education is “committed to early-childhood education.”

The noncompliant areas were the access to health and dental care (records provided within 90 days) and providing maintenance to playground equipment.

ACF officials took a sampling of 119 student files for review. Twenty-nine percent of the files reviewed contained no evidence of medical and dental determinations. In addition, 4 percent of the files reviewed contained evidence that health determinations were made after the 90-day time frame.

ACF officials also noted that the center’s outdoor play area had three climbers “with sharp plastic edges accessible to and used by children.” The report also states a blue tunnel had cracks in the plastic, and a yellow climber had rubberized coating that was melted.

The report states Henson told officials he had sent a request for repairs on the blue tunnel and yellow climber to the district Nov. 11, 2012, but the repairs hadn’t been made by the time ACF officials conducted the review.

The first report gave the center 120 days to correct the problems or submit a letter to the ACF regional office requesting an extension.

In October, the ACF conducted a “monitoring review” of the program to determine if the noncompliant areas were corrected. The playground equipment had been fixed and/or replaced.

However, the health and dental determinations weren’t corrected, the March 10 report states.

“A review of data-tracking reports found 75 of 366 children enrolled more than 90 days — 20 percent — did not yet receive health or dental determinations,” the report states. “In addition, 17 of the 35 children identified during the triennial review did not receive determinations. The revised policies and procedures were not implemented.”

The new report gives the center 180 days to correct the problem.

In addition, the report shows another new area of noncompliance — the center wasn’t sharing accurate and regular information about program planning, policies and Head Start agency operations. This area must be remedied in 120 days, according to the report.

Henson submitted a letter to the USD 501 board of education on March 14 stating the center is working on a revised corrective action plan, “including much stricter monitoring of the procedures already written.”

Henson said corrective measures for the dental and physicals determinations already have started, including having on-site dental tests and physicals available, making phone calls, and sending letters home to remind parents that dental, physical and lead tests have to be submitted within 90 days and reminding parents at parent-teacher conferences.

“We are getting a little more assertive in asking for that (screenings),” Henson said.

One of the major problems is helping parents find dentists and physicians who accept medical cards, Henson said.

“That’s one of our real challenges in this community,” he said.

While some of Sheldon’s students have insurance, many have medical cards or nothing at all.

Numbers show the corrective action steps are helping, Henson said. Currently, nearly 85 percent of students have physical screenings on file; 77.4 percent have dental screenings on file; and 82.9 percent have had a lead test.

“We know we are doing better,” Henson said. “We have a tremendous staff here that really cares. We are so dedicated to serving these children and families.”

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Could the teachers and students at Baker School of Nursing (located at Stormont-Vail) help with getting the physical screenings done?
Parents of the students who have medical cards or no insurance coverage should contact the Marian Dental Clinic.